‘Desirable that India and China maintain stable and good relations’: Russian envoy hails Modi-Xi meet

On October 23, Modi and Xi endorsed the agreement on patrolling and disengagement along the Line of Actual Control.

“The meeting in Kazan included discussions on border issues and bilateral cooperation,” Alipov said, adding that Russia values the strengthening of ties between the two countries.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan. (AP Photo)

“It is important and desirable that India and China maintain stable and good relations. This is favourable for Eurasian security and beneficial for the world at large,” he said, pointing to comments made by PM Modi on Eurasian prosperity hinging on strong India-China relations after the meeting in Kazan.

Asserting that the recently concluded BRICS summit in Kazan was a “total success”, he said the grouping is “not an exclusive but an inclusive platform”. “BRICS is not anti-West but non-West,” he added.

The summit, held in an extended format for the first time, brought together leaders from 35 countries, focusing on development issues, global governance reform, and increased cooperation for the Global South, the envoy said.

One of the summit’s key outcomes was the creation of a new category of BRICS “partner states,” allowing more countries to engage with BRICS initiatives, he said.

Alipov said the summit advanced plans for a BRICS cross-border payment system and expanded currency arrangements which, he said, would help members manage short-term current account deficits.

He criticised US sanctions on Russia, cautioning that similar action could eventually target other BRICS countries. “Today it is Russia; tomorrow it could be China, and possibly even India,” he said.

Alipov said that New Delhi and Moscow were making efforts to establish a direct trade payment system in roubles and rupees. “Both countries are thinking about a rouble-rupee trade mechanism,” Alipov said, adding that “over cautiousness” of Indian banks, rather than the exchange rate, is the “biggest challenge.”

Claiming this was because of pressure from US, he said, “The US has been meticulous in tracking transactions between India and Russia, even threatening sanctions.”

However, despite Moscow’s push on de-dollarisation, India has been more cautious.

Due to the sanctions on Russia and the complexities around expanding the rupee-rouble trade, the Indian government and country’s financial regulators continue to be wary with several proposals of Sberbank AG, Russia’s largest bank, still not being cleared.

A recent stocktaking by the government shows that ECGC Ltd (Export Credit Guarantee Corporation, an Indian government enterprise) had retained Russia’s ‘high risk’ rating in its country risk assessment list, market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India had restricted Sberbank’s FPI (Foreign Portfolio Investor) licence to trading only in WTI oil and natural gas derivatives, and that the bank was also not involved in the e-rupee pilot project of the Reserve Bank of India.

On Monday, the Russian envoy also said India should not be restricted to working only with US-aligned countries. “Today it is necessary for India to settle its relationship with Russia; tomorrow the US might ask India to curb its relationship with Bangladesh, for example. There might be an endless list of countries the US decides upon.”

The Ambassador stressed the need for India, Russia, China, “to have an equal voice in various issues of global financial cooperation.”

“India’s voice should be taken into account, and, like the rest of the world, India has all capacities,” Alipov added.

On nuclear and defence cooperation between India and Russia, Alipov noted that Russia remains a key player in India’s nuclear energy market. “We are constructing six power plants at Kudankulam, and our cooperation in the nuclear energy sector is progressing very well,” he said.

In the defence sector, Alipov commended the ongoing work on the BrahMos missile project, as well as Russia’s support for India’s “AtmaNirbhar Bharat” and “Make in India” initiatives.

Alipov flagged the high-level visits expected between Russia and India in the coming weeks, including an inter-government dialogue scheduled for November.